Winter storm creates havoc, but Charlotte area dodges worst of the ice threat so far

The Charlotte region avoided the worst of Winter Storm Izzy on Sunday, with dangerous ice accumulations far less than what forecasters originally feared.

But there is a “strong potential” for black ice on the roads in the Charlotte area overnight and early Monday, officials warned.

The National Weather Service initially predicted up to a third of an inch of ice from daylong freezing rain, an amount that could have brought down limbs and power lines, and would have left roads impassable.

Instead, according to Scott Krentz, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Greer, S.C., a trace of ice fell. The heavier bands of freezing rain moved south and east of the city, he said. Additional accumulations of sleet and snow of up to an inch were still expected before the system looks to move out of the Carolinas by 10 p.m.

The storm still stands to be the most significant winter weather to hit the two states in more than three years. There were over 1,200 flights canceled at Charlotte Douglas International Airport through Monday and more than 113,000 Duke Energy customers without power by the mid-afternoon Sunday, including 70,000 in North Carolina.

By 4:30 p.m., the Duke Energy outage map showed under 89,000 outages across the Carolinas.

Here’s the latest on the storm:

Emergency shelters open in Mecklenburg

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Emergency Management Office, the American Red Cross and the town of Matthews announced the opening of four emergency shelters for Monday night. The facilities were available to anyone who needs “a warm, safe place to go.”

The Matthews site opened at noon Sunday, and the rest were set to open at 4 p.m. People are required to wear masks due to COVID:

▪ Crews Recreation Center,1201 Crews Road, Matthews

▪ Hopewell High School, 11530 Beatties Ford Road

▪ Mallard Creek High School, 3825 Johnston Oehler Road, Charlotte

▪ Central Piedmont, Worrell Building, 1228 Elizabeth Ave., Charlotte

Mecklenburg County officials asked that people coming to the shelters bring these items if possible: Clothing and toiletries for a couple of days; extra sleeping bags or blankets; sweatshirts, jackets, hats and gloves; snacks; medications; a phone and charger; and books, cards, or other small forms of entertainment.

One last thing: Pets are welcome.

Charlotte’s weather outlook

What started as snow and sleet just before 1:30 a.m. in Charlotte will change to mostly sleet and snow showers Sunday afternoon and into night, the weather service said.

At 1:15 p.m., the mercury had risen to 31 degrees at Charlotte Douglas International Airport with a high of 32 expected. A wintry mix of precipitation was expected to continue through the day Sunday, gradually changing back to snow, sleet or rain from west to east through the afternoon before tapering off after sundown.

Hard freezes overnight could make morning travel treacherous, and county and state officials urged drivers to stay off the roads.

A frigid Charlotte forecast means icy roads could linger into at least the middle of the week, meteorologists said. The NWS forecast Sunday called for three straight mornings of subfreezing overnight lows — 30 degrees Monday, 21 degrees Tuesday and 28 degrees Wednesday.

Monday should be sunny but with a high of only 41 degrees, the forecast shows.

And highs are forecast to remain in the 40s through Thursday, before plummeting to an expected high of only 32 degrees Friday.

Thursday’s low should ease up a bit, to 38 degrees, but snow showers and a low of 26 are forecast for early Friday.

Power outages hit 113,000 in NC, SC, Duke Energy says

Duke Energy expected 750,000 of its 4.3 million customers in the Carolinas to lose power.

At 2:30 p.m., more than 113,000 Duke Energy customers — including some 70,000 in North Carolina — had lost power, the largest concentration of them east and southeast of Charlotte and between Asheville and the upstate of South Carolina.

By 4:45 p.m., the total number of outages in both states had dropped to under 90,000.

“As of now there is some optimism that the numbers are not going to be as high as we expected,” Duke spokesman Randy Wheeless told the Observer. “But we caution that there are still a few more hours remaining in this storm. And a few hours can make a big difference.”

Mecklenburg County remained mostly unscathed, with about 2,000 customers without power as of 4:45, Duke Energy said. Duke Energy has warned that repairs in some of the hardest hit areas could take several days.

The state’s 26 electrical cooperatives, which serve more than 2.5 million people statewide, reported 13,733 outages as of 4:45 p.m.

Slick roads around Charlotte and NC

The weather service says driving conditions would range throughout Sunday from “dangerous to impossible.”

In Charlotte, interstates were open but icy in spots. Many neighborhood streets was ice-covered and largely empty. So far, area motorists appear to be leaving their cars in the garage. At 2 p.m., Charlotte-Mecklenburg police reported 41 crashes since midnight involving 16 injuries.

And as of 11 a.m., according to the N.C. Department of Transportation, Interstate 95 near Exit 31/N.C. 20 near Fayetteville was closed in both directions due to low-hanging power lines. The freeway was expected to reopen by 2 p.m.

The N.C. State Highway Patrol reported handling over 200 collisions as of noon.

“For today, the best way to avoid a car accident or getting stranded is to stay put,” Gov. Roy Cooper said. “Stay put and stay safe.”

No CMS decision on Tuesday school yet

Most schools get a break due to be closed for the Martin Luther King Holiday on Monday.

Citing the “unpredictability of winter storms,” Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools officials have said they won’t announce plans for Tuesday classes until Monday afternoon.

CLT sees over 1,200 canceled flights

More than 1,200 flights already have been canceled through Monday at Charlotte Douglas International, the most for any airport in the country. As of 4:30 p.m., only a handful of flights were still listed as on schedule for takeoff through Sunday night, the airport reported.

At least 267 CLT flights have been canceled for Monday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.com. The airport said that as of late morning, two of its three parallel runways were open.

Trash pickup in Charlotte

Because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Monday, Charlotte’s Solid Waste Services planned a one-day delay in trash and recycling pickup this week.

Monday collections will occur on Tuesday and slide one day through Saturday, the agency said in a tweet on Sunday.

Snow and ice totals elsewhere in NC

As predicted, the Foothills have gotten more snow, the Charlotte metro area more ice, according to National Weather Service spotters as of 11 a.m.

▪ Rutherfordton: 9 inches

▪ Morganton: 5.5 inches.

▪ Hickory: 5 inches.

▪ Shelby: 3 inches of snow/sleet.

▪ Dallas in Gaston County: 2 inches

▪ Mooresville: 3 inches

▪ Waxhaw: 1 inch of sleet.

Staff writer Mark Price and correspondent Steve Lyttle contributed.